The term Lengthsman was coined in the 1700s in a concept rooted in the Tudor Era as far back as War of the Roses and enclosure. Originally, it referred to someone who kept a "length" of road neat, tidy and passable in the Middle Ages, with particular emphasis on boundary marking. Lengthsmen were used on canals and railways from the beginnings of both.[1] On land, lengthsmen might be responsible for a few miles between adjacent villages and especially on commonage. Employed originally by the 'Lords of the Manor' and latterly by parish councils, they would keep grass and weeds down in verges, keep drainage ditches clear and repair fences. Litter, such as it was in those times, was cleared and instances are recorded of wild flowers being planted and tended.